


on sugar highs and kidnapping

by anamatics



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-11
Updated: 2013-02-11
Packaged: 2017-11-28 22:17:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,889
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/679479
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anamatics/pseuds/anamatics
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“You kidnapped Henry,” Regina says curtly.  “And you’ll be hearing from my lawyer.”  Spoilers through 'Tiny'</p>
            </blockquote>





	on sugar highs and kidnapping

Henry, Emma’s gotta admit, is the most spoiled little shit ever.  He’s bouncing off the walls, running all over the place, and even Gold – who’s pretty even keeled when not beating the living crap outta dudes – is getting antsy. 

Scratch that, he’s downright twitchy and Emma’s this close to calling Regina and demanding to know what the fuck she’s supposed to do with the kid as he eats his third goddamn cinnamon roll in the past thirty minutes.  For fuck’s sake, where is he putting them and how can he possibly still have room for them?

And other questions – a novel, by Emma Swan.

But really, this whole situation blows.  Gold’s forced her hand and she’s stuck flying to NYC of all stupid places – why the fuck they didn’t just drive is beyond her – it’s like a twenty minute flight from Logan – they’d be better off driving.  Flying just seems excessive.

Clearly Gold needs to study more American geography, cause he’s getting fleeced on this deal.

So they’re going to NYC, too busy and far too crazy.  Emma hasn’t been here since right after the towers came down and she’s not particularly eager to repeat the experience.  New Yorkers, on average, are fucking dicks and Henry’s still pretty young and innocent and doesn’t really need to be exposed to that shit.  Besides, she’s supposed to be his mom.

When they’d boarded the plane, Emma had had no proof that Henry was her son and Gold had had to use some sort of magic trick to fool the TSA agent into just waving them through.  She should have called Regina, or something, because now Henry’s hyped up on sugar and Emma really, really doesn’t want to even think about claiming him as her son.  Because for fuck’s sake!  He’s bouncing. Literally. Bouncing.

She’s gonna scream.

“Calm that child before I do it for him,” Gold growls and Emma wants to tell him to get fucked, but he’s been weird ever since she helped him through the body scanners and metal detectors at security.  Emma wonders if maybe she should have argued that the cane and scarf had to stay as he was old and clearly injured. She coulda made up a whole slew of pretty awesome stories about him being a ‘Nam vet or something.  Maybe added some PTSD to explain why he was so crabby.

But mostly, she just hates that she has to bring Henry along.  While she’s certain that Regina’d protect him from Cora (because Emma’s not stupid and both Mary Margaret and Regina herself have let on that Cora is the sort of parent that mostly resembles Emma’s third, fifth, sixth and eighth foster families pretty well), she’s not willing to take the risk.  Regina’s sure to understand.  Or at least she hopes so.

They’d arrived at the airport with about three hours to spare, and Gold and Henry are both freaking the fuck out about flying.  Emma doesn’t really get it, considering that it’s just a goddamn airplane, not the space shuttle or something.  This isn’t even a real plane, just a goddamn puddle jumper, they’ll probably be able to spit on individual people over Connecticut as they fly over. 

Everything here is so quintessentially Boston that Emma misses Maine.  She misses Regina and Snow and even David goddamn Nolan (who she still won’t willingly admit is her father because he’s a total douchebag and who’s to say Snow didn’t sleep around?) and she misses how predictable everything is.  If there is one thing that isn’t predictable at all, it’s Boston and its terrible people with their bad attitudes and incomprehensible accents. 

Well, to be fair, she’s going to New York, which is almost shittier.

“Can I get another one?” Henry asks and Emma groans because that shit’s expensive.  Gold gives her a look that positively screams ‘control your spawn or I will take my beat stick and beat him’ and Emma gulps and takes henry’s hand.  They stand as one and hurry back off to Cinnabon because even Emma can’t deny that shit ain’t delicious. 

“Kid,” Emma says seriously as soon as they’re away from Gold’s earshot.  She’s keeping an eye on him to make sure that he doesn’t like Rumpelstiltskin-hulk-out or something and start killing fools, but really she wants to talk to Henry. “I’m going to buy this for you, but you gotta do me a favor.”

“Okay?” Henry says, raising his eyebrows and positively vibrating with all the sugar he’s consumed. 

“I need you to call your mom.  We left before I could make sure it was okay that we bounced.  I mean, I’m sure that she’ll understand, what with her crazy mom running around. But I want you to tell her that you’re with me and that we’re safe.”

“Should I tell her that you love her and that you send kisses over the phone and gross stuff like that?” Henry asks and Emma makes a throat slitting motion with her finger and Henry just laughs.  He’s an evil little shit and she hates him.  Because he’s against her.  Because he can’t be for her because she’s fucking his mom which makes her the evil one in this situation.  Because he’s nearly eleven and he’s got eyes and knows this whole situation is really fucking messed up. 

Emma shrugs.  “Yeah, if you wanna,” she says, before turning to the lady behind the counter who has  _the most fantastic weave_ holy shit.  “Could I get another regular bun for captain sugar addiction over here?” she asks.

“Sure thing!” the lady says and Emma grins at her.

“I dig your hair,” she says as Henry takes her cell phone and bounces a little way down the corridor. 

The lady behind the counter laughs and boxes up Henry’s cinnamon bun and heads down to the till.  Emma hands over her TD card and the woman stares at it for a second before asking, “Where’re you guys from?”

“Maine,” Emma explains.  “Rural Maine.”

“Can’t imagine you get to see a whole lot of good hair up there,” the lady laughs and Emma smiles right back at her. 

“You have no idea.  I grew up in New York and Washington, being in a place that boring can be really off-putting.”

“I’ll say,” the lady laughed. She handed Emma back her card and smiled slow and even.  This was the sort of person that Emma always knew that she’d get along with and she wants to add that Henry’s mom is Latina and that’s gotta mean something for the Great White State of Maine, but it’s really not her job to apologize for any state – cheese or otherwise.  “Thank you for stopping by,” the lady adds, and Emma grins at her.

“Thank you!” she says and darts away to listen in on Henry’s mommy convo because seriously she’s just a big creeper and doesn’t much care who knows it. 

“—but she says that she’s sorry!” Henry’s protesting and Emma knows that this is already going south.  She really should have called Regina before.  She knew it then and she knows it now and it cuts her deep inside and she gestures to the box and then Gold and Henry seems to take the hint and takes the box and hands the phone to Emma.  He takes his cinnamon bun back to Mr. Gold and proceeds to go back and talk Gold’s ear off about something – god only know what.  Probably Pokemon or X-Men, Henry loves him some X-Men.

“Hi Regina,” Emma says.  She feels like a divorced parent who can’t meet pick up time, or rather one that fuck off with the kid in tow in the first place.  She hates this, but she’s sure that Regina will somehow understand.  She’s not the hero after all, no matter how much everyone wants her to be.

“You kidnapped Henry,” Regina says curtly.  “And you’ll be hearing from my lawyer.”

“Come on…” Emma groans.  Because Regina’s right and she fucking refuses to goddamn admit that because seriously fuck that.  “I brought him with me because I don’t trust David goddamn Nolan to watch him after last time.  I mean – horses? Zombies – god only knows it was only a matter of time until your mother got hold of him…”

Regina’s breath is hot and heavy in the phone and Emma knows she’s wrong.

“I’m sorry,” she tries, and this whole situation fucking blows.  She runs a hand through her hair and sighs.  She leans back against the wall of the terminal corridor and sighs again.  She has no idea how to fix this shit.  “I didn’t want your mother to be anywhere near him.”

“So you took him without my consent.  Really Ms. Swan, you say you worked in law enforcement before Storybrooke…”

“ _With_ law enforcement,” Emma corrects in a hiss.  “I did this because I didn’t know where you were.  When Archie came back you weren’t exactly clamoring for us to grovel before you – very out of character, Regina.”

She tutts.  “I got the same from your mother earlier.  Needless to say that we will be discussing this – at length – upon your return.” Her tone turns soft and she adds, “Emma I know why you did it, but I cannot abide by your not telling me.”

“I’m sorry, Regina.” Emma whispers.  “I would have – I would have, I don’t know what I was thinking.”

“You weren’t, clearly,” Regina retorts.  “It’s alright, happens a lot around me.  Regardless, take  _care_  of my son.  If he has so much of a scratch on him—”

“He’s got a nice sugar high,” Emma chuckles.

“I’m sure Gold loves that,” Regina replies curtly.

“I’ll say.”

They lapse into silence and Emma runs a tired hand through her hair.  “Regina, look – if your mom is in town, I didn’t want Henry to be where she could get to him.”

“Believe me, I understand,” Regina sighs loudly after admitting that fact and Emma feels her lips quirk upwards into a victorious grin.  “I just wish you’d told me.”

“I know, I’m sorry.”

This is all so new to Emma.  She’s never had this sort of a relationship before.  Regina is the first and probably will be the last person that she feels at all beholden to, and she sort of hates it in a loving sort of way.  Regina is both the best and the worst in her, and Emma’s oddly okay with that.

“I gotta go - ” Emma says as the gate attendant announces that they’re starting pre-boarding and Gold’s cane is enough of a reason for that if she’s ever heard of one.  “I’ll call you when I get to New York?”

“Go,” Regina says and the ‘I love you’ is more than implied and Emma’s lips part to say the words right back.  She doesn’t know if she’s ever actually gotten to that point with anyone else, but Regina’s smiling in her voice alone and Emma wants to believe that it’s there.  So she smiles right back and says ‘love ya’ and hangs up before Regina has a chance to respond.

Maybe it’s good for the first time, maybe not.  But Emma’s got a kid with a sugar high and the threat of lawyers, not to mention and evil fucking magical being to babysit.  She’ll deal with it later.

Like she always does.


End file.
